MARK OSEGUEDA On Singing SLAYER Songs With KERRY KING: 'I Do My Best To Do TOM ARAYA Justice, And I Think I Do'

During a recent appearance on the Iron City Rocks podcast, DEATH ANGEL singer Mark Osegueda spoke about how he ended up joining SLAYER guitarist Kerry King's solo band more than two years ago. In addition to Kerry and Mark, the KERRY KING band includes drummer Paul Bostaph (SLAYER),bassist Kyle Sanders (HELLYEAH) and guitarist Phil Demmel (formerly of MACHINE HEAD). Osegueda said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I love working with Kerry, and I love being in that band. It's a blast. I love all the guys. It's been a great experience. It sure has.

"Now, when the opportunity presented itself, it presented itself in an odd way as so much I also sought it," Mark explained. "I did — I sought it. 'Cause I kind of caught wind, at one of these NAMM conferences… I was somewhere at one of the NAMM conventions, and at this particular one, a couple of people just approached me. They were in the industry. I had no idea. And I was down there performing with [the all-star metal collective] METAL ALLEGIANCE. It was at the after parties at the hotel or whatnot, and a couple different people from different circles came up to me that particular year and said, 'You're one of the people Kerry's considering for his new project.' It kind of took me aback. I'm, like, 'Really?' Because I'm friends with Kerry, and it was never mentioned to me. And then it started getting a little mouse in my head running. And then I kind of started really thinking about it. This was during the pandemic now. A few months had gone by, and the pandemic was happening, I started just really thinking about it, and I approached a few people of mine that are heavy hitters in the music industry as far as musicians and some management companies. And I said, 'Hey, I'm just throwing this out there. What would you think if I was approached by Kerry? Do you think I should do it?' And these were people that are far more successful than me in music, than many people in music. [Laughs] And they were, like, 'You'd be a fool not to.' So when I kind of heard that, that's when it kind of hit me. And as I said, me and Kerry are friends. So I just kind of texted him and just said, 'Hey, man. I know you're putting something together. And I just wanna throw my hat in the ring.' I go, 'or rather my throat in the ring.' And his response was, 'I'd be lying if I [said I] hadn't thought about it.' And I said, 'Okay."

Mark continued: "So then me and him just started — he started sending me things, music, just instrumental things, and then started sending me music and sheets of lyrics and then some guide vocal stuff. And then I started going down to Southern California and demoing things with him, just privately. We didn't let anyone know we were doing this. And we eventually ended up demoing what [has] come [to be] the whole first [KERRY KING] record. But he already had the whole [rest of the] band picked out, except he kind of waited until the last minute before he finally said, 'Okay, you're the guy.' And when he finally did, he pulled me aside — this was a couple of years later, since I started the process — and he just kind of said, 'If you want the gig, it's yours.' And I just gave him a big hug. I'm, like, 'Fuck yeah. I do.' And it's been great. It's been a great experience. And I look forward to more to come with them too. I just love playing music. As long as I'm busy playing music, I'm happy."

Asked if there was any "trepidation" on his part to perform SLAYER songs with Kerry, considering that his voice is a bit different from that of SLAYER frontman Tom Araya, Mark said: "Well, I've always respected Tom, and I really admire his voice and always have. So, actually, when I got the gig with Kerry, we were mostly just working on the original material with that. Kerry pretty much had what he wanted. He laid down the guide vocal and said, 'This is what I want, just more aggressive.' So I just went in there and gave it my all and made it very, very aggressive. So, that came out. That's just me at my most aggressive, I guess, delivery of anything. And then it's when it came to playing live and that's when we throw in some SLAYER songs. But with that, I'm a SLAYER fan, so it doesn't take me long to learn the songs. So I just get up there and I do him justice — I do Tom justice. That's the way I see it, for sure. And I say that because justice needs to be done, if you're gonna sing him, 'cause got such a unique voice and I think a great voice. And that's why — I do my best to do him justice, and I think I do."

In a separate interview with the That Metal Interview podcast, Osegueda stated about his involvement with King's solo band: "Yeah, it's doing great. We just got back from Japan about three weeks ago, our first shows in Japan. So those were amazing. And, yeah, for [King's debut solo] record [2024's 'From Hell I Rise'], we toured everywhere. And I guess in a certain way, the touring cycle for that record has been completed. We did North America a couple of times, Europe a couple of times, South America, Japan, Australia. So we've worked that record pretty good. And now we're busy writing, getting the material together for the second record. And it's coming, it's coming along. And we're gonna probably record the second record sometime in the first quarter of this upcoming year. As far as when it'll be released, I'm not quite sure. But we're definitely in the process of getting the songs together for it."

Commenting on what it has been like to record and tour with King, Demmel and Bostaph, Osegueda said: "They're good guys. I love the guys. It's a great band to be a part of. Touring with them's amazing. They're all solid dudes that I've known for years, decades. And I'm very proud to be a part of it and I look forward to much more to come, for sure."

When the interviewer noted that Mark does a "great job of emulating Tom Araya's" vocal parts when King and his solo band perform SLAYER material live, Osegueda said: "Well, Tom, he's an icon. I admire him; I have for many years. I'm a SLAYER fan, so he's got a very distinct voice and one that I've admired for many, many years. So when we do those songs, I just get out there and do my best to do the songs justice and his voice justice, because I think he's fantastic."

In December 2024, Mark was asked by Australia's May The Rock Be With You what he thinks he can do vocally with Kerry's solo band that he can't do with DEATH ANGEL. He responded: "I don't know if that is anything that I'm not allowed to do that I can't do with DEATH ANGEL because I kind of have carte blanche with DEATH ANGEL to do what I want, in a way. But what I think it's just brought out another character in my voice. And it's much more aggressive — probably the most aggressive thing that I've done vocally. The closest thing we'd have in it from DEATH ANGEL is a song called 'Divine Defector'. [That] is the closest one that we have to that intensity level. But this whole album is even more so. If anything, it just allows me to just really get out all frustrations the whole way through the set. [Laughs] And, as I said, it gives more variety in my voice."

"From Hell I Rise" came out in May 2024 via Reigning Phoenix Music. Working with producer Josh Wilbur (KORN, LAMB OF GOD, AVENGED SEVENFOLD, BAD RELIGION),the vast bulk of King's solo album was recorded at Henson Recording Studios (formerly A&M Studios) in Los Angeles, California, a location that birthed classics from THE DOORS, PINK FLOYD, RAMONES and SOUNDGARDEN, among others.

Last year, Mark told Uruguay's The Dark Melody about how he feels about being part of Kerry's band: "I'm thrilled about it. That's how I feel about it. I'm excited as hell. I worked hard to get that gig — very hard to get that gig — and since I did, I worked very hard in the studio. And then the recording experience of the record was incredible. We went to the studio with Josh Wilbur and the recording went great. It went great. And I think Kerry assembled a band of people he knew could pull off the vision and what he heard in his head… And the album, it's a beast. It's a savage. It is."

Regarding how he landed the gig in Kerry's band, Mark told El Planeta Del Rock: "It wasn't an overnight thing. It was a long process. Me and Kerry are friends, for sure, but that's not the reason I got the gig. By no means did I get the gig because we're friends; it was definitely a lot of hard work.

"He's an institution unto himself as his, as is SLAYER, and when SLAYER announced that they weren't gonna go any longer, he made it known to everyone that he was far from done," Mark continued. "And when that was announced, it was quite a few years ago. It was probably during the pandemic that I just gave him a cold call out of the blue, or a cold text rather, just saying, 'Just so you know, I heard you're doing this, and I'm just throwing my name into the hat, into the ring, or throwing my throat into the ring rather.' And he was, like, 'Hmm.' He's a very to-the-point guy, and he said, 'Okay.' And I know he's very serious about everything he does musically.

"It was a lot of hard work, I'll tell you that — a lot of going back and forth," Mark repeated. "I did quite a bit of demoing with him, and nothing was a sure thing ever. I know he had other people in mind for every for every position in the band. I think Paul was the shoo-in right off the bat, and then after that… Kerry knew his vision. He knew what he wanted. He knew what he heard in his head, and he wanted a lineup that could deliver it. And after a lot of hard work, one day me and him were out together — and it was plain simple as that. But quite some time had gone by and a lot of work was put into it, and he just said, 'If you want the gig, it's yours.' And I, of course, I just looked at him, like, 'Ah.' Pretty much, 'Fuck yeah.' And I gave him a huge hug, and from then on it was just even more hard work. As hard as I worked to get the gig, once I got the gig, it was even more hard work just concentrating on the songs and getting what I was gonna do to deliver in the studio. Once we got in the studio, we went in with Josh Wilbur, who produced it, at Henson Studios in Hollywood, and we didn't mess around. We got in — I think loaded in, two weeks later loaded out. It was work every day, but one of the most amazing studio experiences I've had and very fulfilling."

Kerry told Rolling Stone about Osegueda's addition to the band: "With Mark, he was on board early on. I just didn't pull that trigger. I was like, 'Let's see what happens.' Say for instance, [JUDAS PRIEST's] Rob Halford calls me and says, 'Hey, I would love to be your singer,' I'd have to go that way."

King also confirmed that PANTERA's Philip Anselmo was "considered" as a possible singer for his new project. "My management, my promoter, my record label all wanted Phil," Kerry said. "Phil's a good friend of mine, but I always thought he's not the right guy. That has nothing to do with his ability; I just knew he wasn't the right guy. When you hear Mark on this record, you know that's the guy.

"I had to do due diligence, because at the end of the day, had Philip been the guy, we'd be in arenas immediately because we could play new stuff, we could play PANTERA, we could play SLAYER, and fans would've been happy. It ended when the PANTERA thing came up.

"I saw Mark a few years back singing covers of MINOR THREAT and cameo in THE WEDDING BAND with members of METALLICA," King added. "It was different from what he does in DEATH ANGEL, and he sounded great. He's super versatile. He took steps to make this different than DEATH ANGEL. I don't touch on probably 50 percent of what he can do on the album.

"Mark knew how I expected the songs to be performed. On my demos, I sing with very good conviction, but I don't have pipes; that's why I don't sing. With 'Residue', he sounded so good I had to ask him, 'Is this sustainable? I don't want you to blow your load on this record and then blow your voice out every third show.' And he swore up and down he could do it. He went on to some of the harder ones and did the same thing on those, so I went, 'Okay.'"

Following a tour with LAMB OF GOD and MASTODON and his first European headline tour in 2024, King and his new band hit the road for the 28-date North American headline tour in early 2025. With MUNICIPAL WASTE as special guest and ALIEN WEAPONRY supporting, the tour launched in San Francisco on January 15, 2025, and wrapped at House of Blues in Las Vegas on February 22, 2025.

In early May 2024, the KERRY KING band performed its first live show at Reggies in Chicago. In the days following, the band went from playing an intimate venue to performing at the huge U.S. festivals Welcome To Rockville (Florida) and Sonic Temple (Ohio).

KERRY KING launched a European tour on June 3, 2024 — King's 60th birthday – in Tilburg, The Netherlands. The trek combined headline shows in the U.K., The Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Spain but also festival appearances such as Rock Am Ring, Hellfest, Tuska, Download, Sweden Rock Festival and many more.

The SLAYER guitarist's solo band played its first concert as the support act for LAMB OF GOD and MASTODON on July 19, 2024 at the Texas Trust CU Theatre in Grand Prairie, Texas. The six-week "Ashes Of Leviathan" tour wrapped on August 31, 2024 in Omaha, Nebraska.

Image credit: Pics from the pit